Cancer is a significant health problem throughout the world. Although advances have been made in detection and therapy of cancer, no vaccine or other universally successful method for prevention or treatment is currently available. Current therapies, which are generally based on a combination of chemotherapy or surgery and radiation, continue to prove inadequate in many patients.
Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer among males, with an estimated incidence of 30% in men over the age of 50. Overwhelming clinical evidence shows that human prostate cancer has the propensity to metastasize to bone, and the disease appears to progress inevitably from androgen dependent to androgen refractory status, leading to increased patient mortality. This prevalent disease is currently the second leading cause of cancer death among men in the U.S.
In spite of considerable research into therapies for the disease, prostate cancer remains difficult to treat. Commonly, treatment is based on surgery and/or radiation therapy, but these methods are ineffective in a significant percentage of cases. Two previously identified prostate specific proteins—prostate specific antigen (PSA) and prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP)— have limited therapeutic and diagnostic potential. For example, PSA levels do not always correlate well with the presence of prostate cancer, being positive in a percentage of non-prostate cancer cases, including benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Furthermore, PSA measurements correlate with prostate volume, and do not indicate the level of metastasis.
In spite of considerable research into therapies for these and other cancers, prostate cancer remains difficult to diagnose and treat effectively. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for improved methods for detecting and treating such cancers. The present invention fulfills these needs and further provides other related advantages.